The Unheard Laugh
by thatRandomGrl
Summary: He couldn't take it anymore. He was completely going mad…not that he wasn't before. Without her, Joker was just…a criminal.
1. Chapter 1

**The Unheard Laugh**

**Chapter 1:**

He couldn't take it anymore. He was completely going mad…not that he wasn't before. Without her, Joker was just…a criminal. The Joker sat in Arkham wondering what his henchwoman was doing.

_Was she trying to get him out? OF COURSE she was…she hasn't failed him before_. The Joker sat in solitary for a month now, still wondering where his darling has gone since she was released a week ago.

_Perhaps she's waiting for him to devise a plan to get himself out_? The questions ran through his god forsaken mind. He sat there in the dark wondering where she was. So much, that he was irritating himself.

"WHERE IS THAT BITCH?!" he called out. The camera perched in the corner of his cell watched his every move. A few seconds later, a doctor appeared responding to his sudden outburst.

"Did you need me?" she asked in a polite but firm voice. The green haired lunatic didn't look up at the woman who thought he needed assistance. He ignored her, not knowing what to say at the current point. He wanted to harass the woman, but his mind was set on one woman and one woman only- his Harlequin.

The doctor slowly walked back slowly.

"Okay…" she said. "Just a reminder, you have an appointment with Dr. Leland in a few moments."

The green and purple jester was losing his patience. He looked up at the doctor with a glare that was demanding her to GO AWAY. She backed away slowly and finally turned around walked away.

Just as the doctor has said, two guards came to take the Joker to the doctor's office. Each of the guards grasped an arm pulling the clown down the hall. They threw him into Dr. Leland's office, and strapped him down to a chair.

"Good evening, Joker." Joan Leland said.

"Evening, doll face." He said, putting on his act. Obviously he didn't mean it, but did he want one of Harley's doctors to know he's missing her? DEFINITELY NOT! Dr. Leland was emotionless to the Joker's remark.

"How have you been feeling?" she asked, eyes looking into his own. The Joker just stared into the distance.

Joan took out her notepad and pen and began scribbling on her paper. The Joker woke up from his daze.

"Am I UNWELL, LELAND?" the Joker spat. She looked up as he began to speak, still showing no sense of emotion. "JUST because I am thinking about how much I miss Harley, and I don't feel like speaking, I AM UNWELL?!" he began to yell. He tried his best to get out of the chair he was strapped to, trying to get the hidden knife he had deep inside his pocket. He then realized his secret was out. He knew it was true; he just never wanted to admit it. He missed Harley.

Dr. Leland just stared at the clown. All these years she was concerned for Harley; the one who had always taken the blame for Joker's mistakes…the woman who was corrupted by a psychopathic maniac. The Joker stared back at the doctor wondering what she would do. _Will she tell his girlfriend_? He knew there was only one way to keep her quiet. However, that way was quite messy, and being chained to a chair, unable to reach his knife was no help either.

The guards came in to take the Joker back to his cell. As he was being taken out of the office, the Joker began to speak again.

"Just remember, Doc, this stuff is CONFIDENTIAL! If a little bird tweets into anyone's ear, both the bird and the ear GO MISSING!" he sang to her in a mocking voice. As he was being taken away, he dropped to the floor, faking a trip. As one of his arms slipped out of the guard's hand, he elbowed him in the gut, and sent his head crashing into the other guards head. The collapsed to the ground and the Joker ran out the doors of the criminally insane wing. Doctors and guards came running after the clown as he skipped off. His laugh cackled throughout the whole facility.

As he ran out the doors, he realized that no one expected this escape. Usually, he would have been caught by now. As the mob of people were about 4-5 cells behind him, he turned back around and waved good bye as he ran out the doors of the facility. The Asylum sirens began to sound. As the searchlights panned the ground, the joker hid in the darkness, and ran to the exit.

He finally made it as he ran; his hope to finally get back home seemed to grow clearer and clearer. He entered his home and a smile grew pass his ears. He ran into the house.

"HARLEY! I'M HOME!" he said in his best _I Love Lucy _voice only to find that the house was abandoned.


	2. Chapter 2

**The Unheard Laugh**

**Chapter 2:**

"Harley?" The Joker's voice echoed throughout the empty house. He searched for the blonde girl in every room and even in the most unexpected places: Nothing. He walked into the bedroom and opened her clothes drawer…everything was taken out of it. The suspicious look on Joker's face lightened when he thought of where else she could be. He ran outside and hopped into the purple convertible that always sat in front of the house. He began driving as fast as he could, but not fast enough to draw attention towards him.

He pulled up to the toxic waste dump where Ivy hides herself. Despite the toxins he inhaled, he walked up to the door and began to bang on it. A few seconds later, a slim, red haired, green tinted skinned woman opened the door.

"oh…" she said unenthused, "what are YOU door here?"

"yeah, yeah, yeah, how ya doin, have you lost weight, YADAH YADAH YADAH," the Joker said with an attitude towards Ivy. He opened the door wider, and barged into the house. He searched every room. Poison Ivy came up behind him.

"Can I help you?" she spat with her arms crossed.

"Just trying to find my Poo, as all. Where is she?" The Joker demanded.

"I don't know!" Ivy retorted, "…and even if I did, I STILL wouldn't tell you!"

The Joker was losing his patience. _Where else could she have gone_? He felt so obligated to kill this plant lady right here, right now. But since she was immune to gases and poisons, she wouldn't be much fun to kill. Joker never really like Poison Ivy. He always thought plants weren't much of a reason to go and kill people, but who is he to accuse? He does it just for fun.

The angry clown stormed out of the toxic waste dump and drove off. As he tried his best not to make a scene, all he could think about was his babe…his girl…his Harlequin. He parked his car in the front of his house and headed inside. He slammed his front door shut , plopped his favorite chair and let out a huge sigh as he put his held his head up with his hands.

_Where could she be_? He looked down at the makeshift coffee table they made out of boxes where a single black glove was laying. The clown picked up the glove wondering why THIS was just left. He began to play with the glove, feeling the finger slots and trying to fit his slender bony hand inside the tiny glove. As he began to take his hand out, after figuring his hand was nowhere near fitting through the glove, a tiny white paper fell from the inside of the glove on to the hard wood floor. He put the tiny glove back on the coffee table and bent over to pick up the piece of paper. As he began to open the paper, he noticed traces of rain drops…_but it hasn't rained all month. Tear drops, maybe_? The black ink was smudged in parts of the note, but it was still able to be read.

"_Dear Puddin,_

_If you have gotten this note, it probably means that you've noticed I was gone. That's because I finally realized that my place isn't to be with you. Don't come looking for me around Wayne Enterprises, because I'm not there. Have a great life, and perhaps we'll see each other again…someday._

_Yours Truly,_

_Harleen Quinzel"_

He looked up in utter disbelief. The days that went by as he mistreated her suddenly punched him right back in the face. He could believe what he was reading. A small giggle had escaped his lips as he noticed the irony that came at him. _All these years, she took his pain because of love…and now as he truly realized what he had…she was gone_. Still he tried to fool himself, thinking that she wasn't much to lose.

"Heh…Good Riddance." He mumbled under his breath. He then walked to the bedroom and sat on the bed, where he fell fast asleep, still thinking of his Harley.

The next day, Joker opened his eyes to the bright sun…but no smell of sizzling bacon.

"HARLEY!" he yelled as he went down to the kitchen, "WHERE'S THE-"

He then remembered the note that was placed on the table. "oh…" he sighed. He walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge. He looked at the kernelled milk in disgust, and turned to the eggs. He barely remembers cooking for himself. He would always wake up to the smell of scrambled eggs and crispy bacon made by his…EX- girlfriend. He looked at the egg in suspicion, trying to figure out how to cook them. He took out a pan and placed it on the stove. He turned on the burner and placed the full egg on the pan. Pretty soon, he realized that the egg didn't look like it should have. He poked it with the spatula, where it suddenly broke, letting the yolk fly out of the shell and hit him straight in the face.

"Perhaps I should…go out for breakfast…" he spoke to himself. He turned off the burner, put the pan in the sink, and headed out the door into town.

The clown carefully rode into town, trying not to attract any sort of police…or BAT attention. He drove up to a parking slot and headed inside, forgetting to put the coins in. he walked up to the little coffee shop that was coincidentally right next to the Wayne Enterprises building. He ordered a black coffee and handed the lady the last of his money. He walked outside finding a blonde haired girl walking up to the Wayne Enterprises building.

"HARLEY!" he called with a massive grin on his face his heart skipped a beat as he saw his girl.

"Joker?!" she called surprisingly. She stopped in her dead tracks, trying not to crack a smile as she saw her sweetheart one more time.


	3. Chapter 3

**The Unheard Laugh**

**Chapter 3:**

The little blonde haired woman stepped back as the Joker ran over to her in open arms. She was wearing a business suit with her old glasses on and her hair pulled back into a low bun. As he wrapped his long, bony arms around her, she tried her best to resist the urge to lose her sanity again.

"What's wrong, Poo? Aren't you happy to see your Puddin' again?" the Joker questioned. Harley was shaking, trying her best not to say yes and have him sweep her off her feet into another abandoned factory where they hide from a man in a bat costume.

"Uh-well, um, Joker," Harley stuttered trying to loosen the grip of the clowns stronghold.

"Don't you mean, Mistah J.?" the Joker asked trying to give Harley a kiss. Harley backed her head away trying not to give in.

"No, Joker…" she resisted. The Joker finally backed away.

"But why not, poo? The Joker said as playfully as he could.

"Remember when you knocked me out of that building? Before we were sent back to Arkham?" Harley said in her regular voice, not trying to bring back her fake New Jersey accent.

"I sent you flowers." The joker tried to sugar coat.

"But before I was released, that was all could think about…all you did was push me around, and you only wanted me to get out of trouble, or to help you cause it. And Joker, I'm done" she finally explained. Unknowing to what he would do, she cowered, getting ready for a sudden hit from the clown. Joker looked at her with eyes she's never seen before on his face. The eyes were loving and gentle. But she forced herself to resist his heart melting look.

"I'm late for work." She said at last. She headed inside the Wayne Enterprises building, where Mr. Wayne himself was standing.

"Good morning, Harleen. Run into a friend?" he asked, noticing her lateness. She looked up at the billionaire with her eyes beginning to water.

"Yes sir." She said bowing her head to the ground, trying not to show her boss the tears she began to shed. She quickly walked into the building, leaving Joker standing in the middle of the sidewalk, staring into the Wayne Enterprises building. Mr. Wayne looked at the clown with a smiling face; he greeted him with a nod and walked back inside the building.

The Joker stood there wondering what this long lost feeling was. His heart quivered as he thought more about his Harlequin who told him she was never going back to the good old days; that she was finished doing crime. He glumly walked back to the car and drove home, unwilling to finish his coffee or do anything besides sitting in his favorite purple chair and playing with his doll's old glove.

* * *

Harley ran inside the Wayne Enterprises building not wanting to look back on her Puddin's confused face. She ran to the lady's room and sat in one of the stalls as the tears rolled down her face. She never wanted to leave him, but she was given a second chance in life. Did she want to mess it up? Of course not.

A knock was made on her stall.

"Miss? Are you okay?" a woman's voice asked. Harley walked out of the stall and headed towards the sink where a mirror reflected her makeup smudged face.

"Yeah…" she said in a shaky voice. The person asking was a red- haired woman about the same height as her. Harley looked at her reflection and tried to fix her makeup as much as she could before the silent sobs began to sound again.

"Do you need anything?" the red haired woman insisted on helping. Harley was beginning to get angry.

"Just some time ALONE!" she snapped at the girl. Harley turned her face towards the girl and noticed it was the Commissioner's daughter, Barbara Gordon. Barbara looked at Harley with big eyes, not expecting the outburst. Harley got a hold of her senses when she realized who she just snapped at.

Harley sighed and looked at the woman again. "I'm sorry…my day…isn't going the way I hoped it should have." Harley confessed.

"It's okay; we all have those days, sometimes. Would you want to talk about it?" Barbara consoled.

"Not right now…I actually have work I need to finish." Harley said, "Besides, I've been too much trouble for you already. I don't want to cause trouble for Mr. Wayne when he finds out that I haven't finished my work yet." Harley began to walk out of the bathroom when Barbara grabbed her arm. Harley stopped.

"I'm sure Mr. Wayne will understand." Barbara said. Harley smiled at the woman as more tears had started to water. Harley then turned back to Barbara and began to tell her about Joker and her.

"I used to be a criminal…your father actually is one of the cops that caught me several times." Harley began. "I used to be a clinical psychiatrist for the Joker, and pretty soon, I fell in love. I did whatever he told me and even more, to try and please him. Recently, I was released from Arkham and I swore not to go back to my life of crime. To do that, I had to say goodbye to Joker. Today, he ran into me outside and…he wanted me to be his henchwoman again. I realized I wasn't ready to give up on him…but I can't just leave a life I was just rebuilding again." Harley began to sob and more makeup smeared down her delicate cheek. Barbara stared at Harley not showing any concern. Finally, Barbara spoke.

"Not everyone is prepared for what life throws at them. Perhaps this was a test; something to see if you are really ready to give up what you love, for what's right." Barbara tried her best to calm the blonde girl down. Harley wiped the trickling tears with her sleeve and smiled at the red- haired girl. Harley then threw her arms out to Barbara and pulled her in for a squeeze. Harley then quickly pulled away realizing that this girl was someone she barely knew.

"Sorry…" Harley said embarrassed. Barbara giggled.

"It's okay Harley." Barbara said trying to let her know that she didn't need to apologize. Harley looked up at her realizing that she never told Barbara her name.

"It's…Harleen…" Harley tried to say.

"Oh, sorry!" Barbara apologized, "I only assumed-

"It's okay; I just need to go now…" Harley walked away remembering the days she spent with the Joker: all of the punches she took from him, all of people she killed or harmed for him…all of these memories floated in her mind just from Barbara called her Harley.

Harley walked out of the Wayne Enterprises building staring off into space and ignoring everything being said around her. She hopped into a cab that was outside and gripped the sides of the seat. The cab driver turned around.

"Where to?" he asked.

"JUST DRIVE!" Harley snapped at the man. He turned back around and drove the car around Gotham unknowing where his passenger wanted to go. Harley was shaking trying not to lose her sanity once more. However, the more she fought, the harder it was to keep fighting. An apartment complex was coming up down the road.

"STOP HERE!" Harley yelled at the driver. The driver did what he was told. He looked at the meter to see how much she owed.

"Okay…that'll be…uh Miss?" Before the driver turned around, Harley was already out of the car door.

"MISS! You have to pay!" The driver called. Harley took out her gun and pointed it at the driver.

"I suggest you drive away RIGHT. NOW!" Harley said between her teeth. Her New Jersey accent has surfaced once again as she threatened the man. The man sped off, not wanted to be shot. Harley barged into the empty house and sat down on sofa with her hands holding her head. Her tears began to pour from her face once more as she noticed she couldn't take it anymore. She missed her sweet heart and she can't do anything to save her sanity because of him.


	4. Chapter 4

**The Unheard Laugh**

**Chapter 4:**

The whole rest of the evening, Harley sat on her sofa holding her head in her hands feeling the tears running down her face. _What could she do_? The talk with Barbara ran through her mind. The one thing she said about Joker and choosing the right thing made her mad. _What if her Puddin WAS the right thing to do_? She began to shake in rage.

"NO!" she shouted to herself, "think of all the therapies…all the sessions with doctors! All of it would go down the crapper if I went back to him...well it's not like it went down the crapper before…"

She was at constant battle with herself for the whole night. She paced back and forth trying to find a solution that would let her be with her one true love, AND keep her sanity. The decisions made her eyes water once again. She sat back down on the sofa in the same position as before.

Not long after, she heard tapping at her window. She looked up with makeup still smudged down her face. She saw another rock thrown at the window. She got up and looked out. Outside she saw a purple and green figure. Her heart skipped a beat. She opened the window where the figure began to sing.

His voice rang in her ears and chilled went down her spine as he sang each word of his favorite song.

"_Only you….can make this world seem right….only you…can make the darkness bright….only you, and you alone, can thrill me like you do and fill my heart will love, for only you_."

She remembered the song from when he would sing it to Batman. She let out a little giggle.

"That's what I love hearing, poo! I miss it when you laugh with me!" The clown called out. Harley swooned as she remembered the times she had with her Mistah J. Then she snapped out of it.

"No!" she told herself. "How did you find me?" she demanded from Joker.

"Pumpkin Pie!" he called out, "I never left! I only followed you home."

"Well…g-get off my property…be-before I call the cops!" Harley warned. The Joker laughed.

"Oh, my sweet! You never learned from the first time you met me in Arkham, have you? You would have done it by now!"

Harley remembered the first time he said that to her in Arkham. She shut the window trying to resist the clown outside. She ran to the bedroom where she found a vase with a bouquet of roses in them. Like always, there was a note attached to the vase.

_I miss you –J_

That was what the entire note said. Never in Harley's life had she heard or seen those word come out of Joker's mouth. She wanted to go back to him so badly, but she already had a job and started her new life. She filled herself with rage and threw the vase at the wall. She threw herself on the bed and buried her face in the pillow. As her loud sobs filled the room, she felt a long bony hand on her back. The hand rubbed up and down. She looked up to find a white, smiling face looking down at her. She got up off the bed and backed in the corner.

"Aw, Harley! There's no need to cry. I'm right here!" The joker said while slowly walking towards her.

"How did you get in here?" she asked.

"Through the front door… you never locked it, darling!" the joker said. He held her close and ran his fingers through her bleach blonde hair.

His touch ran down her spine. She couldn't take this constant banter with herself. She didn't want to give in, but her love was here in her house, and she never wanted him to leave. Giving in to her wants, she held him close, stood up on her toes and rested her lips on his own.

All of her worries were worn away as he caressed her. His gentle touch ran up and down her back, caressing her and their bodies pressed up against each other. Harley never felt so complete in all of her days of sanity. If only she could have seen that the decision for her life's path was already decided.

The next day, Harley noticed the aching pain she felt in her entire body. Being away from the Joker for so long, she almost forgot the bruises and welts she would sometimes wake up to. In the spot next to her, the joker was only half awake. He flopped his arm on the tiny blonde girl.

"Harley," he said as his face rested in the pillow, "Go make some breakfast."

"Alright, Puddin!" Harley said, trying to mask the pain that ran up and down her body. She got up out of the bed to the best of her ability and stumbled her way to the closet where she normally got ready for work. In the closet, about ten different business suits were hung up. She looked at them in shame and looked down at the floor where her old red and black jump suit was laying. A grin suddenly appeared as she picked them up and got herself ready in the bathroom.

* * *

The same time as he always had, Bruce Wayne walked into the Wayne Enterprises building. Each person he walked by had stood up a greeted him. Mr. Wayne walked over to the elevator and pressed the button until it lit up. As he waited for the elevator, he was greeted by more of his employees and his admirers (mostly women). Finally the elevator doors opened revealing a young and slender woman dressed in red and black latched onto a pale white man in a purple and green suit. Bruce Wayne, having many encounters with these colorful people, knew exactly who they were. However, doing anything would result in serious questioning.

"MORNING, RICH BOY!" the pale man's voice boomed. Bruce tried his best to smile at man, but his alter ego took over. All he was able to do was nod to the two. He stepped in the elevator wondering what Joker had in store for him. As the doors were closing, he watched every move of two that walked out of the building hand in hand. Bruce's mind wandered as he thought of what Joker would have done this time. As the elevator arrived at the top floor of his office, his body guard, Sasha Bordeux automatically came up to him.

"Good Morning, Mr. Wayne!" she said as she held a pile of paperwork in her hand.

"Good Morning Sasha! What on the agenda for today?" Bruce greeted. Suddenly, Bruce was handed a piece of paper attached to a rectangular box. He went over to his desk and opened it up. Inside was what looking like a playing card with a picture of a joker on it. All around the card, two words were repeated.

'_I QUIT!'_ were the words written on the card.

Bruce looked at Sasha who looked at the card in concern. Moments later, the card began to rapidly beep. Sasha's face was the face of being alarmed; she quickly rushed to the window behind Bruce's desk as he threw it out the window. Both Sasha and Bruce ducked for cover under his desk. Within what seemed like a minute, the card exploded in midair, letting excess smoke inside the top floor. The smoke and heat from the explosion set off the Fire sprinklers that dangled from the ceiling. From down below, both Bruce and Sasha could hear the loud laughter coming from out on the street. As Bruce and Sasha got up from under the desk, Bruce rolled his eyes and sighed.

"Looks like Bruce Wayne isn't the only one who has a mess to clean up." Sasha said, giving Bruce a wink. Sasha handed Bruce a brief case that contained his suit. Bruce ran to the exit of the office. Before he exited, he turned around and looked at Sasha.

"Sasha, have this mess cleaned up." Bruce said back, giving her a wink in return.

"Yes sir." Sasha exhaled. She smiled as she watched the playboy billionaire transform into a masked vigilante.

Bruce headed up to the top of the building fully dressed in his suit. He leaped off the building with his cape catching the wind as he glided after the Joker in another chase once again.

_**A/N: Welp! That's it for this story! I don't know about you, but I was in the mood for a little Harley Quinn and Joker love. And since I was focusing on the relationship of the Bat Family, I thought, "hey, why not?" if you don't know who Sasha is, she was assigned as his body guard, and as time went on, she found out his secret. In order to continue to do her job (protect Bruce Wayne), she took up a costume and joined him on his patrols. She has no alternate/superhero name though…so with that, I hope you liked this story!If you have any story ideas for me, just contact me and I'll see what I can do! If you're here in America, good luck voting if you are and if you aren't, I hope you have a great day! ;)**_


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